Police in China frequently beat, torture and arbitrarily detain suspected sex workers, often with little or no evidence that they engaged in prostitution, a rights group said Tuesday in a report that called on the government to discipline abusive officers.

Officers sometimes detain women only on the basis of their carrying condoms, thus deterring their use among sex workers and increasing the risk of spreading HIV, New York-based Human Rights Watch said. It also condemned forced HIV testing of sex workers by public health agencies and the disclosure of the results to third parties.

The government officially views prostitution as an “ugly social phenomenon” and the solicitation, sale and purchase of sex in China are illegal. However, despite frequent government crackdowns, prostitution remains rampant and sexual services are openly offered in massage parlors, karaoke bars and nightclubs.